Chess at 30,000 feet
by Arty Mori
Summary: Alternate story of The Reichenbach Fall. After 'The Hounds of Baskerville'. Sherlock finds Moriarty has a sinister plan up his sleeve. Probably the most sinsiter ever devised in history
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

It was a brisk, cold morning on the 3rd of February 2012, and a tall man stood alone on the tarmac of Gate 2 of Heathrow Airport. This was nothing out-of-the-usual for the holiday makers and business commuters who saw him that cold morning, and not one person considered that this may be the last day anybody saw this man alive. While his presence was nothing unusual, the man himself was quite peculiar. He was fairly tall, well build with short cut black hair, and he clutched in his hand a single yellow folder. On his back he had two black backpacks, and as he waited patiently the disorganised paper in the file flapped madly, as if trying to break free of his vice like grip. This man was Sherlock Holmes. Unbeknownst to all Holmes was surveying his surroundings with utmost detail, not that anybody could tell what was ticking away in his mind on a normal day, never-mind at his best day he had witnessed for a long time. But even the famed man himself did not know how badly this day could go, and what fate held for him at the end of it.

To start with, John was late. Not exactly a great start to the day they had both agreed, that the future of the world hung in the balance of. Secondly, so was the Prime Minister. He had however heard on the radio he was on his way. He impatiently drummed his fingers on the file as he pondered the infinite possibilities the day could make, and what he believed was the most likely path it could take. His phone vibrated. Typical, Watson was stuck in passport control. Still it gave him the time to take a walk, not as if there was much to see anyway. In the five minutes he had spare, he only saw a few deserted planes and steel-faced immigration officials. As he returned to the Gate he saw John run like a headless chicken across the departures lounge above him. Lord above, he might even have to hold a sign saying 'Secret government rendezvous here' to get the man to notice where he was. But even as John looked down for him, he was not to know of the first of the hellish events that would cause such a disastrous end to the day had already occurred.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**36 hours ago**

Professor James Moriarty.

Status - imprisoned HM Broadmoor.

Release date – 1st February 2012

Mental condition - clinically insane

This report lay on the governor's desk, facing the massive man sitting opposite him. He was restrained by 4 armed guards but made no struggle for freedom. Maybe he knew it was already his, but you would have to be insane to try and escape this place. He had only one thing in his eyes and it was contempt. He was otherwise impossible to read, he had been told that by 6 psychiatrists, one of whom was still in hospital. He decided he might as well start this thing.

"Well professor?"

"Well, What sir?"

He returned fire with such speed it was like a pedantic schoolchild. He knew this man had intellectual potential but the attitude of him, even guarded, seemed to lord over him.

"I hope you realise that today is your release date?"

"With all due respect, SIR..." he spat out the last word as if it was bitter, like some sort of dreadful coffee. "Please don't patronise me, I can read my own report Governor."

The Governor sighed to himself, and decided this should be over quickly, and for the reason to just get him out as soon as possible

"Well, we just want to ask before you go, do you believe that your treatment has helped your... condition?"

"If saying yes gets me out of this hole any quicker, then yes."

"Please Professor we really need to know if our treatments have worked, just give me an honest answer."

"Yes."

Professor, just go, or I shall lose all patience with you. I hope I shall never have to see you again in my establishment"

"And I hope I shall nev-" with a wave of his hand more guards piled through the doubled doors with their guns cocked.

Moriarty understood the message. Without uttering a single word he raised his hands above his head and allowed himself to be frogmarched down the long corridor and out in the open air. Allowing himself a moment to relish freedom Moriarty gathered his thoughts. He still had no orientation of what had been happening around him for the past two years. News. He craved information and facts of some sort, and had the unquenchable desire to buy a newspaper. He knew somewhere in his mind that that bastard Holmes would have to be involved in the events of the day in one way or another. Daily Mail? Slightly to fascist for his taste. The Times? Seemed right. But Moriarty was stunned by the headline more than the choice of paper. 'Anti-war summit to be held.' this was good, this was more than good, it was fantastic. Moriarty's blank expression grew into a twisted grin. Because he knew someone would not be able to keep their big nose out of international affairs. He knew him well enough to know he would be at that summit tomorrow, and that meant him following suit. He paid for the paper and walked out into the chilled evening air. Flanking a taxi, he desperately scanned the paper until he found what he was looking for. The location of the summit. Well that was unexpected, but nevertheless. "London Hilton, Park Lane, please" Moriarty settled down for the few hour journey. "I'm coming to get you Holmes."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Holmes?"

"Down here John!"

"Sorry, I'm late, I had to-"

"Shut up, not interested."

"But, I-"

"I said shut up."

Holmes was thinking, and when he is like that it is never wise to disturb him. John opened his mouth to speak again, but thought the better of it and stopped.

"The Prime Minister and the British Ambassador for the United States will arrive shortly, Doctor Watson, and that requires you to stay hushed up about most matters, especially our little incident at Baskerville last Saturday, do you understand?"

"Yes, but I thought the Prime Minister may know about a level 5 break-in a one of his most secure military bases?"

"I thought it better for them not to see tarnishes on our record John."

For a few seconds nothing was said. The icy wind blew across the open taxiway and a few fluorescent jacketed attendants bustled around a Lear Jet. A sound of sirens and a screech if tyres signified the entrance of the Prime Minister. A 3-vehicle convoy rounded the corner of terminal 5 and headed toward them. Holmes guessed the Prime Minister was in the first vehicle, judging by the constant speed and the police trail around it. Holmes straightened his back as the cars stopped and the occupants got out.

"Mr Holmes and Doctor Watson, I presume?"

The Prime Minister offered his hand cordially, and Homes shook it, albeit unenthusiastically, as he had never been a great fan of the man and had voted for the opposition at the election last year.

"Good Morning sir."

"Do you know when the others will arrive Ambassador Hoynes?"

"They are all present at the moment sir"

Hoynes passed a dossier to the Prime Minister, while Holmes kept a firm grip on his file. The Prime Minister flicked through the dossier then put it in his briefcase. He snapped it shut quickly, but not quickly enough for him to stop Holmes from analysing the contents.

**Paracetamol.** The man was obviously in a great deal of pain by the amount of it he was carrying.

**Cigarettes,** Black Demons manufactured in Cuba, supposedly more enjoyable and twenty times more likely to cause death.

**A picture**, on the dossier. Holmes dropped his file. Moriarty. Why on earth would a photograph of that man be in the Prime Minister's briefcase? There were very few reasons as to why it should be.

Before Holmes could even start to think, the Prime Minister spoke again to Hoynes

"When does the Professor Moriarty arrive ambassador?"

"2 minutes sir"

"WHAT?"Holmes and Watson both yelled in utter surprise and outrage

"Oh yes, Mr Holmes, your brother, whatshisname, Mycroft, had him released mainly due to his advice that you are likely to become irrational in moments of global valuation. He told me the Professor was ideal for keeping your investigation under control."

This was like a bolt of lightning hit Holmes and he went ballistic with rage. He bagan cursing the heavens, and screaming to no one in particular

"MYCROFT! GODDAMN YOU, YOU F***ING BASTARD! I WILL KILL YOU WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU BROTHER!"

Seeing as Holmes was losing the plot John decided that now was the time to intervene

"Alright, Sherlock alright, calm down."

"You expect me to calm down! I am just about to be locked on the same plane as my worst enemy, for 18 straight hours! And you want ME, to calm down! Are you out of your mind!"

Hoynes interjected, "He's here"

A black BMW pulled up about 100 meters away and Moriarty got out. He was driving on his own and appeared unarmed, calming the hysterical detective down a little. Moriarty strode across the tarmac, heading with all intent towards a bright red fuming Sherlock Holmes.

Moriarty was grinning manically. To see his enemy's day turned upside down left a good feeling inside him, a type he didn't often have and he relished it.

He decided to speak first, "Hello Holmes."

"Can't you just f••• off Moriarty, I was having a fantastic time only a while ago, and that was before I found out you were coming" he spat.

Moriarty nearly laughed, this was going to be fun.

"Now, now Sherlock, that's not the way to greet an old friend, is it?"

Before the argument could progress any further, a siren sounded. Loudly. About 100 Fluorescent runway attendants emerged running from the terminal; and passengers flocked to the windows. Something was happening. They realised that now was the time.

"Here! They! Come! "Shouted John

The siren was blocked out by the closer and closer drone of aircraft engines. The drone soon became almighty roar. The wind seemed like a possessed demon and the small group of five covered their ears with their hands.

And then they saw it. Like an eagle it descended from the sky, with landing gear extended, and it came in to land. What it was, was unmistakeable. Electric blue on the side and with the presidential seal on the door. Air Force One was here.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

It was huge. The size of this monster of an aircraft was almost the same size as the terminal the stood next to. And there was something great about it. Maybe it was the various western heads of state on board. Maybe it was just the plane itself. But it seemed to radiate power in its presence and it didn't flow and streamline with the air. It seemed to push it out of the way with brute force.  
>All five of them including Holmes and Moriarty stood in a stunned silence, amazed by the display they had just witnessed in front of their eyes. Hoynes had dropped the dossier, Sherlock's pale hands were scrabbling at his folder for dear life and Watson was sitting on the ground as white as a sheet.<br>But it was the Prime Minister who broke the silence.  
>"Now I don't see why we can't have one of those…"<br>Typical politician, Holmes thought, never happy with what they have themselves and always envious of what someone else has, regardless of the price. This snapped Holmes out of his trance like state, and he was on the balls of his feet.  
>"Come on, come on we haven't got all day, we have a summit to attend gentlemen!"<br>Whilst Hoynes returned to his senses and Watson regained his balance, Moriarty was already striding to his car.  
>"Where do you think you're going?" Holmes asked.<br>"Well the plane is going to stop at the Presidential Hangar, which is a quarter of a mile… that way, not over here at a passenger gate"  
>"We had better get over there quickly, Prime Minister" Hoynes interjected<br>As the Moriarty drove off and the Prime Minister and the Ambassador returned to the convoy, John turned to Holmes.  
>"Now how do we get there Sherlock, we haven't got a car, and I can assure you we are not asking the Prime Minister for a lift"<br>Holmes had already set his eyes on something. And it was the perfect incognito transport. And John soon saw what he was looking at.  
>"Please don't say you mean, that thing…"<br>"Yes John, I mean full well that thing"

**5 minutes later**  
>From the suitcase compartment of the luggage buggy there was a large amount of complaining<br>coming from John.  
>"Sherlock! I even wish we had asked Moriarty for a lift now! I can't even feel my backside!"<p>

Holmes was sat in the front of the buggy, driving, if you could even call it that, and he was oblivious to John's rage, possibly due to the fact that the 6 metal trolleys attached to it were causing such a ruckus he could not hear the engine, let alone Watson.  
>"Nearly there now, John!"<br>"What was that!"  
>Still no reply came from Holmes<br>"I said, WHAT WAS - ARRGH!"  
>"John we're here!"<br>Sherlock stopped the buggy and got out. Still not a word from John. Then it hit him that he may have stopped a little quickly for John's liking. He sighed and walked round to the cart that John had been sitting in and pulled back the green tarpaulin.  
>"Oh dear" Holmes muttered<br>John was still conscious, thankfully, however his predicament was not too great, as he was vomiting into some poor woman's suitcase.  
>"Come on we don't have all day, get out of there and get moving, any compliments for the chauffeur John?" Holmes smirked<br>Watson was not in the slightest amused by Holmes inability to drive, and in his minorly concussed mind, decided it would be a good idea to take a swing at Holmes.  
>"Calm down, Calm down, my driving can't be too bad, it's just a little rusty around the edges…" Holmes muttered.<br>"You reckon so, eh?" John asked quizzically, straightening himself out.  
>"That, Sherlock is not 'rusty around the edges', that's, 'I've never driven one of these before, let's give it a spin'"<br>"Trust you to be so cynical John" Sherlock muttered, picking up his files and backpacks from the passenger seat.  
>The two of them began to stride across the taxiway, the slightest tinge of heat creeping into the air.<br>They could see the others waiting by Air Force One.  
>Holmes stopped dead in his tracks.<br>There were four people standing in the group, so someone else was tagging along because no-one had disembarked from the aircraft.  
>John had now noticed this aswell, but the realisation of who it was struck Sherlock first, and it struck him like a brick to the face.<br>His reaction could only be compared to that of a boiling kettle, as his fists clenched and unclenched, and he lowered his head as he turned bright red with fury.  
>Standing next to Moriarty and the Prime Minister was the man he wanted to have a stern word with.<br>Mycroft.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**  
><strong>"MYCROFT!"<br>**Holmes sense of self-control had left him in an instant, leaving a gargantuan rage directed precisely at his brother.  
>Mycroft had turned white. He had never seen Holmes this mad, even when he stole his '<strong>Cluedo: Deluxe Edition' <strong>at the age of 9.  
>He knew he would be angry, but he could not have prepared himself for Holmes next move.<br>Holmes took off, quite literally, across the hangar towards Mycroft, who now had the facial expression, John had observed, of someone who had quite recently shat themselves.  
>Holmes nearly had a heart attack when he saw Mycroft.<br>After inviting Moriarty along to the summit he wanted payback, and this ensued for the few minutes that they played a game of chase across the airport.  
>Moriarty was rolling on the floor in hysterics as Holmes seemed to take the form of an angry purple blob with a billowing coat behind it, and relentlessly chased his terrified brother like an eagle who had spotted his prey.<br>The chase ended quite abruptly when Mycroft tripped over his own foot and fell flat on his face, with Sherlock clawing at his neck, like he was trying to remove his lungs with his bare hands.  
>"Now, now brother I had good reas-uurrgghh!" Holmes now began choking him<br>"I'm going to kill you for doing that, Mycroft you goddamn idiot!" Holmes yelled with fury as his brother came close to the same shade of purple that he was, although it may be due to a lack of oxygen on his behalf.  
>Mycroft was saved from choking to death by the sound of a gun cocking behind Sherlock.<br>"Sir, please release him, or you will be placed under arrest by the authorisation invested in me by the Preside-"  
>"All right, all right I'll let him go…"<br>Mycroft sat up, gasping for air like a fish out of water, the purple slowly draining from his face as he looked around and realised the predicament Sherlock was in.  
>They were surrounded by a small army, with enough firepower to start a small war, with several Heckler &amp; Koch MP5Ks aimed at Sherlock's head, due to the large amount of red laser dots on it.<br>"Oh fuck it…" Holmes muttered.  
>It was the presidential guard squadron, who had presumably seen the fight from the plane and had decided to intervene. He turned to the leader of the group, marked out by his rankings and arm badge, reading "Capt. L Henley".<br>As Holmes began to make an elaborate excuse to get himself out of a rather large pickle, there was a cough from Mycroft, who was now standing and rubbing his neck.  
>"It's alright, let him go, he is just a little stunned by the events of the day captain."<br>"Oh, you think so do you. Who the hell do you think you are then?" It was said with a sneer, a complete understatement of what was about to happen next  
>Mycroft may have been injured, but he could definitely show he was pissed off to anyone around him.<br>As he limbered towards the captain, the look of arrogance on Henley's face changed to a far more serious expression a he realised he might have just bitten off more than he could chew.  
>"I'm Mycroft Holmes, brother of that there Sherlock Holmes, Prime Ministerial adviser and Global Peace representative for the United Nations, and the organiser for this summit, so if you do not follow my command, captain, I will have you court-marshalled. Oh and you should refer to your superiors as 'SIR' as well, do you understand?"<br>Henley was astounded and it took a slight moment for him to comprehend what he had just said and done.  
>"Yes, Mr Holmes Sir. I apologise Sir."<br>"At ease!" and gestured for the squad to lower their weapons.  
>As the laser points were lowered from Holmes, who had significantly calmed down, he cracked his neck and strolled casually over to Mycroft.<br>"Thanks for getting me out of that little… mess, but there is still some explanation needed about.. you-know-who." Holmes whispered "Oh and you have had a few promotions recently haven't you?"  
>"Yes I have had those coming a long time, and the position of secretary-general will free up next year brother. And I'll explain about Moriarty on the plane, shall we walk?"<br>The two Holmes meandered back to the plane in tow of Henley's Squad, discussing what they had planned for the summit and possible resolvement of the recent economic wars in the west.  
>As they approached the plane walked towards the boarding stairs, Holmes conversed a few words with Mycroft that may change the future entirely<br>"I know why Moriarty had to come, Mycroft."  
>"I thought as much."<br>"Do you know what I have to do?"  
>"No."<br>"As a wise man once said brother, 'What you don't know can't harm you.' Are you familiar with it?  
>"Yes, I am, why?"<br>"I've just found an exception"


End file.
